SOREK, VALLEY OF

SOREK, VALLEY OF (Heb. נַחַל שׂוֹרֵק, Naḥal Sorek; from the root שרק, "red grapes"), valley on the border of Philistia and the territory of the tribe of Dan. The only biblical reference to it places the meeting of Samson and Delilah there (Judg. 16:4). It is generally identified with Wadi al-Ṣarār, present-day Naḥal Sorek, near which are the ruins of Byzantine Chaparsorech (Eusebius, Onom. 160:2), now Khirbat Surayk. The Sorek Valley was one of the main approaches into the mountains of Judah and several important cities, such as Ekron (Khirbat Mukannaʿ) and Beth-Shemesh, were situated along it. At present, the Jerusalem–Tel Aviv railway runs in the valley.